American Airlines pushed back hard on Friday against reports of a potential merger with United Airlines, sending its stock lower in after-hours trading.
AAL fell over 1% after the company released a statement saying it is not engaged in, nor interested in, any merger talks with United.
American Airlines Group Inc., AAL
“A combination with United would be negative for competition and for consumers,” American Airlines said, adding that such a deal would be “inconsistent with our understanding of the Administration’s philosophy.”
The denial came after a Bloomberg report revealed that United CEO Scott Kirby had floated the idea of combining the two carriers to senior government officials, including President Trump, back in February.
Kirby is a former President of American Airlines who later moved to United, where he now serves as CEO.
It is not clear from the Bloomberg report whether any formal process is underway to explore a deal.
A merger between AAL and UAL would create the single largest airline in the world.
Together, the two carriers control more than a third of the U.S. domestic passenger market, alongside Delta (DAL) and Southwest (LUV).
Analysts have pointed out that a deal of this scale would trigger intense antitrust scrutiny and likely face opposition from consumer groups and rival carriers.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy addressed industry consolidation earlier this month, telling CNBC that there is room for deals in the sector.
Duffy noted that President Trump is generally supportive of big deals happening.
However, Duffy also warned that any major airline merger would be reviewed for its impact on ticket prices and competition.
He said companies would likely need to divest certain assets if two major carriers combined, to prevent excessive market concentration.
American Airlines’ statement appeared to directly address that regulatory reality, framing a UAL tie-up as something that would conflict with antitrust principles.
UAL stock had climbed 7.12% earlier in the week, likely buoyed by merger speculation, while AAL had gained 4.16% in the same period before Friday’s after-hours drop.
By 6:09 PM ET on Friday, AAL had pulled back as the market digested the airline’s firm rejection of the deal.
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